When I agreed to take a "temporary" reduction in hours, I was told that while my hours and subsequently, my pay, were getting cut, my "benefits" were not. So that meant my employer part of my health insurance would still be paid and I'd still accumulate my full vacation and sick time (which is on the low end of the spectrum).
Much to my unhappy surprise, I found out last week that the "powers that be"-i.e. the other partners in the company, decided that a reduction in hours meant a reduction in benefits, specifically, my vacation and sick time. It's been dropped by more than a third. And I'm not happy.
I'm not happy because I did not get the reduction in writing with the promise to keep ALL my benefits. I'm not happy because my immediate boss (and a co-owner of the company) told me otherwise and he knows it. This means I've used up just over half of my vacation time for the year. I did have a mini conversation with my boss about this and he is "willing to work with me if I need additional time off". Boss speak for I f*%$ up. He knows he gave me misinformation, but he won't 'fess up to that. I know he had a meeting with the other partners and they decided otherwise. I know he knows he told me one thing in November and now had to tell me another. Grr.
The part that is the kicker, is that I did not use all my sick days last year, I had about three that I was under the impression could carry over to be used as vacation days instead of being paid out as "well time". Since I told my boss about my trip I had made the assumption that I could use those three days as paid vacation time and save my 2009 days for later this year, maybe actually take some time for me. Guess I was wrong-what did Felix Unger say? "An assumption makes an ass out of you and me".
This is what bothers me most. This is a small company that I work for, but we have two "silent partners/investors" that are not active in the business. We do utilize their other businesses to assist with payroll, accounts payable and receivable, vendors, etc. My boss can if he wants to, over ride the other partners on certain decisions; I've seen him do it before. I've said it before, our company is feeling this economic pinch and my boss has some very odd money saving ideas. I don't get paid that much, I don't have tons of vacation/personal/sick time and I was under the impression that if I agreed to the reduction in hours, those other benefits would not be affected. I'm pretty positive that he caved in on this because he's picking his battles and my time off is not a battle he want's to fight.
I'm also annoyed at myself. I did not get this in writing and it has come back to bite me. I'm annoyed because this happened at my last job with the new bonus structure supposedly to be paid out and did not. I'm too darned trusting and you would think I would have learned my lesson the last time. And I'm going to make sure I take a sick day as a mental health day pretty dammed soon too.
Can you tell it's a Monday?
Monday, March 30, 2009
Saturday, March 28, 2009
You Got The Discharge-Now What?
This is the next installment of my long overdue series on Bouncing Back From Bankruptcy. As always, please consult with your own financial experts and resources when it comes to dealing with and managing your money! The following is my personal experience.
I am now 15 months post Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Discharge and on my way to Bouncing Back From Bankruptcy. I had my 341 Trustee/Creditors meeting in October 2007 and got my discharge just over 3 months later. Hopefully, your 341 Trustee/Creditors meeting goes along uneventfully. What happens after that? Hopefully you get your discharge. My discharge papers came in the mail one day, just a one page form from the Bankruptcy court that gave my name, my case number and said I was discharged. I almost missed the envelope in and amongst the junk mail.
Actually, I started getting offers of new credit even before my discharge letter arrived in the mail. For me, actually getting the discharge letter was a bit anti-climatic. I had been struggling with the whole filing-delays on my part, delays on getting a CMA of the house, delays dealing with my attorney, delays dealing with information the trustee wanted. I was probably the exception and not the norm in filing for a bankruptcy. Maybe it is the norm? You guys tell me.
Anyway, the best bit of advice I can give you as soon as you receive your discharge papers are to do the following:
1) File away for BK petition in a safe place. There is no reason on God's green earth that anyone needs to see that pile of papers again. Keep it for safe keeping, but file it away. If you need a copy, your attorney will probably charge you something like 75c to $1 per page to get you a copy.
2) Take that discharge letter and make about 5 copies, file the original one away. Why make copies? You may need the official court letter at some point for something. Might need it, might not.
3) Get a copy of your credit report 4-6 weeks after you get your discharge letter and make sure that the BK filing is noted. As I always say, I may have negative information on my report, but at least I want that negative information to be correct. AND you want to make sure that all your debts included in the C7 or C13 are correctly noted.
4) Get a folder for all those credit offers that come in, put those offers in the folder and DO NOTHING with them. Remember patience is a virtue!
5) Thank the spiritual entity of your choice for getting your discharge and allowing you to move on and bounce back.
6) Find some time to reflect on your BK filing and make a plan for your own bouncing back and moving forward.
When you file for Bankruptcy, more than likely your credit score has taken a big hit from the late payments, accounts in collections, loans in default, you know, the nasty things. In America, one way to improve your credit score is to establish credit and be on time with your bills. This puts most post BK folks at a bit of a disadvantage. We are bankrupt and can't get credit, but we need credit to improve the FICO score to be able to get credit. So why am I telling you to put those credit offers in a folder?
Simply, most of them are going to try and offer you credit at an outrageous interest rate. I can remember getting letters from finance managers at several car dealerships, some of the dealerships were well known in my area and some were from those sort of seedy looking corner lot used car lots, You know the type, the cars look flashy, lots of flags and signs that say "We Finance Anyone" and probably crap cars. The one company that persistently sent me an application for a credit card also had (to me and others) insane fees and charges. For the privilege of getting a $500 credit card, this particular bank was going to charge about $229 in assorted fees just to "activate" the card that was at a 19.9% rate as well as charge of $7.50 per month fee to have the card.
I had two goals last year. One was to get a credit card again and one was to get a car loan. I ended up with the car loan first, only because my old car really needed to go. It has over 232,000 miles on it and needed a lot of work, again for the third or fourth time. I pulled from my file, those letters from the finance managers of those car dealerships. I had about 10 different "offers of credit". I did my homework on both of the type of vehicle I wanted and the dealerships themselves.
Some of the finance offers were eye opening to say the least. 23% interest rates, loans available only on select makes and models, offers only good up to a set price. Needless to say, these types offers seemed shady. I did get a letter from the finance manager of a local dealership that had a good reputation. I called the finance manager and set up an appointment. Doing my homework paid off. This particular dealership had a vehicle I wanted with all I wanted (plus a couple extras), I went into the meeting with the finance manager well prepared. I had my budget, I had done my homework on the two vehicles I was willing to look at on their lot and I had some cash to put down on the car.
What worked in my favor was that I was organized when I came in to meet with the finance manager. I also had on my credit history, a paid off car loan with a major bank. I did not have a repossession on my account. I drove out of the dealership a few days later with my new to me car and have faithfully paid that loan three days early every month. I am now going to pray to my spiritual entity of choice and hope that I can refinance the Escape at my credit union. I'm hoping I can make it into the single digits.
Getting a credit card took a little longer. For starters, I was not going to "accept" that invitation I mentioned above. I knew out there, there had to be a better offer for me. There are two choices when it comes to credit cards after Bankruptcy. The secured credit card and the unsecured credit card.
A secured credit card is not a pre-paid credit/gift card. It is a credit card issued by a bank. This type of card requires that you put a specific sum of money into an account at that cards bank. This is your collateral so to speak. You then get a credit card with a balance that equals the savings account. You can click here to read on Bankrate.com about secured credit cards. Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Citibank all offer secured credit cards. I also encourage you to check with your local bank and credit union, they may also offer a secured card. Many times after about a year or so of good credit card management, the secured card may be re-issued as an unsecured card. Each banks policies are different.
I waited 10 months before I took the plunge and applied for a credit card. I applied for and got a credit card with a $500 limit, 14.99 % interest rate and a yearly fee of $39. Folks I was thrilled with the whole deal! I also made sure that the card I was applying for reported to all three credit agencies. I want my positive re-payment status to be reflected, remember this is the new and improved Betty here.
There are several banks that issue credit cards to folks with less than perfect credit. One of those banks is the one many PF bloggers love to hate, you know, the What's in Your Wallet Bank. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that if you had a credit card with that bank or one of the others, it may be more difficult for you to get an unsecured card with that bank even at a lower limit. I honestly don't know, but my gut tells me that if that bank was part of your BK filing they would probably be less likely to grant you an unsecured card. No matter which type of card you get, make sure that they report to the major credit bureaus. It will do you no good to have a card that does not report. You want the positives to start hitting your credit report. And ALWAYS READ THE FINE PRINT AND THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS.
The purpose of getting credit is not to run it up again and to carry. It's to help you establish a better credit score. I am perfectly happy with my $500 limit credit card. I use it for things like gas, pet food, and the other odd personal purchase. I also log on to my account every two weeks and either pay in full or pay a chunk down on the card. The highest balance I've had in the past 5 months is now, I have about $200 that will be paid next week which reflects the last of my vacation spending and some car maintenance. I get paid from my weekend job next week and will pay the balance in full.
More so than anything else last year, getting that $500 limit unsecured credit card was such an ego booster. It showed me that I was truly bouncing back.
I think it's also important post discharge to really look at what got you into the BK in the first place. We all have our stories for filing for Bankruptcy. As I've posted before, I had a string of really bad fiscal luck, I could not get out of my own way and I fully admit I also made some less than stellar money decisions which just added fuel to the fiscal fire. My next post in this Bankruptcy Series will be on the importance of "soul searching" and "coming to grips" with the BK filing now that you have filed the bankruptcy and are discharged.
Have a lovely weekend y'all.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Step One-Get the application
I stopped at my credit union on my way home yesterday and picked up a car refinance loan application. I'll sit down this weekend and fill it out. I figure I have NOTHING to loose (maybe a couple points on my credit score) and drop it off at the credit union one day next week. I'm not looking for the rock bottom interest rate, I'm just looking for a better rate than I currently have.
I'll let you know what happens.
Two More No Spend Days
I somehow managed to add two more no spend days to my total. It's amazing what one can do without even trying!
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
A Change In My Personal Direction
On the heels of yesterday's whinging post, I came home to a message on my answering machine. It was from the car dealership that I bought my new to me car from last year. As a just fresh post BK person, my new car is financed at a whopping 14.99% rate. Ouch! But I desperately needed a new auto and I made the plunge into the world of the consumer loan by applying for and getting that car loan just 3 months post discharge.
The dealership reminded me that it has been one year since I purchased that auto. It was one of those courtsey thank you for your business even after12 months later calls. Normally, I would have deleted it 1/3rd of the way through the message. I listened to the whole message. It also made me sit up a bit. For all my complaining about my lack of goal focus, I have to realize that one goal I had last year was to qualify for some sort of a credit card or consumer loan. I got both. I have a car loan and I have a credit card (the credit card with a whopping $500 limit, but that's OK!) I also went in to the car dealership well prepared with a budget, discharge papers, pay stubs, etc. I did a little sweat equity and got my loan.
Soo maybe it's time I really stop with the pity party and self doubt and give myself a little credit for getting back on the bandwagon and attack my new action plan with the purpose of anticipated success instead of anticipating roadblocks. Novel concept-eh? Now to also take the next step and see if my credit union will do a refinance on the car loan, at least I can try to get a lower interest rate.
The dealership reminded me that it has been one year since I purchased that auto. It was one of those courtsey thank you for your business even after12 months later calls. Normally, I would have deleted it 1/3rd of the way through the message. I listened to the whole message. It also made me sit up a bit. For all my complaining about my lack of goal focus, I have to realize that one goal I had last year was to qualify for some sort of a credit card or consumer loan. I got both. I have a car loan and I have a credit card (the credit card with a whopping $500 limit, but that's OK!) I also went in to the car dealership well prepared with a budget, discharge papers, pay stubs, etc. I did a little sweat equity and got my loan.
Soo maybe it's time I really stop with the pity party and self doubt and give myself a little credit for getting back on the bandwagon and attack my new action plan with the purpose of anticipated success instead of anticipating roadblocks. Novel concept-eh? Now to also take the next step and see if my credit union will do a refinance on the car loan, at least I can try to get a lower interest rate.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Decisons Have Been Made
The nice thing about a Transatlantic Flight is the number of hours you have to think. It was 7 hours going to the UK and almost 8 hours coming home. I used the time coming home to give some serious thought about my goals list and what I want to do on the flight back as I mindlessly watched CSI reruns on my personal entertainment screen.
As I've blogged before, I've had to take a reduction in hours from my full time job and not by my choice. I also don't see the job going back to full time from part time. I had hoped that our business would pick up and I could see a return to full time hours. I have been lucky enough to get a part time weekend job to cover the funds shortage. I've had to overcome my own issues about taking a second job and I've made my peace with those issues. BUT I am working approximately 6.5 days a week to earn the same income. The other half day is spent traveling and squishing various personal errands and appointments into that time slot. My free time has drastically dropped to almost Nil and honestly folks, I'm getting physically tired between the work, the travel and my own responsibilities at home. I just don't feel like I have enough time in my week to get certain chores done at home, which I don't. I'm getting caught between my need to get things done at home or even just to rest and my need for cash. Instead of taking a day or weekend off to rest and do my personal work, I'm packing up and going to my weekend job, because I need the cash. When I was employed full time, my goal each month was to cover my car note, which I could do by working about 2-3 weekends a month, that gave me the extra cash and gave me some time off. Not happening now. I've committed myself to working through the first weekend in May, with only one Sunday off for a party I have an invitation to attend. I made that decision to work based on my reduced schedule at my "regular" job and my desire to replace my almost defunct lap top. Those hours will provide me with the additional income I need to make up, cover the cost of the laptop,and cover the cost of my dental visit (oh yeah, I need $400 worth of dental work too).
This weekend was exceptionally tough. Not in the work that had to be done, the work was it's usual, plus some extra animals at the barn, which I knew about last week. I knew we would have a full house this weekend. I just had this overwhelming sense of frustration at the end of each work day that even though I did a job well done at the weekend job, the work at home has been neglected (which it has been). Coming home from work on Thursday, seeing a water leak in my living room and not being able to find the part of the roof causing said leak was discouraging and frustrating. I pulled myself up into my attic crawl space with my flashlight and just can't see to find where the water is coming in. I came home last night and crashed into bed around 9:15 PM, early even for me. My personal To Do list has come to a screeching halt, partially my fault, partially due to circumstances.
So on the flight back to the US, I made the decision to seek full time work somewhere, someplace and then cut back on my weekend job if I could not see or sense a return to full time status. My current job is a cross between a project manager and an office manager for a small company. The perks to this job are it's very close to home, the office environment is pretty good for the most part, I get 75% of my health insurance paid for by the company, I get paid vacation and some paid holidays. I like the work, I like the people, and the office dress is casual.
What I don't like is my boss having a meltdown over the drastic drop in business and IMO a lot of his knee jerk reactions to the current economic situation and some of the ideas he has to save money here at the office (some good, some a bit bizarre). I also don't have things like a 401K plan, retirement options, etc. I'm not getting any younger, I currently don't have a significant other to help offset my expenses, and I'm sure as heck not contributing to my own retirement fund. I'm not helping myself. The other thing is I'm pretty much maxed out on how I can "move up" in this company. I am as far up as I can go, short of buying the company or being made a partner (both not realistic options). Plus to be quite honest, I see another reduction in hours in my future,not a return to full time status, since our business has not picked up and our income stream is down-that would not be a good thing for me at all.
I have a real estate license, but the real estate market is just not happening at the moment and I have no clients. Being less than part time does not help either. One reason I took the weekend job was I was not getting any real estate clients and could not use real estate to as an additional income source as originally planned. I had hoped that when I re-activated my license that I would be able to have a few clients to at least cover my costs associated with the license and additional income to offset the car, contribute to savings, etc. Part of me knows I could be a darned good real estate agent. A lot of the skills I have accumulated in my work life translate well to real estate, I'm good with an overwhelming majority of people, I'm computer literate which helps in searching the various MLS's, I like to read and keep on top of industry trends so buyers and sellers know you are "looking out" for them, I have a nice network/Rolodex of contacts in the field. I have a really good sense of my area's market conditions, my current broker who holds my license has told me that on several occasions. There just are not buyers out there right now.
Part of my is kicking myself for not being a more aggressive saver to my E fund and also allowing myself to have a VERY broad definition of what constitutes an emergency and then dipping into said E-fund. Had I been more diligent about this, maybe I would have the confidence to forgo my current job and move into real estate on a part time basis with the intention to move to full time, the market has to turn around at some point! One fall out from the Bankruptcy is my confidence took a huge hit and I constantly second guess myself with each decision I make. I'm getting better about my decision making, but not where I should be. I hinder myself in that respect.
I made the decision to drag out and dust off my resume and start looking for full time work, either in my current field or a related field AND also make a much more concerted effort to find a way to become self employed and work for myself. I will use the next couple weeks to re-work the resume, start looking at job search engines, and figure out what field I want to pursue work in. I've also started another one of my endless to do lists to assist in this endeavour. This time, the lists will get my attention because the lists will turn into an action plan to put me on my new path.
PLAN A
1) Buy a new laptop for new business. My old laptop is very dated, hard drive is about to crash and does not allow me to connect to the Internet.
2) Price out broadband Internet for home if working from home becomes a viable option (I currently use dial up-gasp, yes sooo 1990's).
3) Pursue online work-Elance, Virtual Assistant work, web design, Virtual Assistant work for real estate agents.
4) Pursue part time work-Continue at barn 3 days a week, currently can provide a steady income stream and that will cover almost my basic living expenses.
5) Give serious thought to entering the Real Estate field on a part time basis-either on my own or as part of a team.
6) If entering the Real Estate field as part of a team, make sure I get a written contract/outline of duties and pay scale.
7) Pursue other part time web based income streams.
8) Work on that E-fund! Now it really needs to be at the 3-6 month mark more so than ever.
PLAN B
1) All of the above PLUS
2) Looking for full time work so that I can move to being 'my own boss' but at least have increased income and more weekend free time.
PLAN C
1) Win the Powerball and say screw it to plan A and B, move to Costa Rica and drink margarita's on the beach.
I'll keep you informed.
As I've blogged before, I've had to take a reduction in hours from my full time job and not by my choice. I also don't see the job going back to full time from part time. I had hoped that our business would pick up and I could see a return to full time hours. I have been lucky enough to get a part time weekend job to cover the funds shortage. I've had to overcome my own issues about taking a second job and I've made my peace with those issues. BUT I am working approximately 6.5 days a week to earn the same income. The other half day is spent traveling and squishing various personal errands and appointments into that time slot. My free time has drastically dropped to almost Nil and honestly folks, I'm getting physically tired between the work, the travel and my own responsibilities at home. I just don't feel like I have enough time in my week to get certain chores done at home, which I don't. I'm getting caught between my need to get things done at home or even just to rest and my need for cash. Instead of taking a day or weekend off to rest and do my personal work, I'm packing up and going to my weekend job, because I need the cash. When I was employed full time, my goal each month was to cover my car note, which I could do by working about 2-3 weekends a month, that gave me the extra cash and gave me some time off. Not happening now. I've committed myself to working through the first weekend in May, with only one Sunday off for a party I have an invitation to attend. I made that decision to work based on my reduced schedule at my "regular" job and my desire to replace my almost defunct lap top. Those hours will provide me with the additional income I need to make up, cover the cost of the laptop,and cover the cost of my dental visit (oh yeah, I need $400 worth of dental work too).
This weekend was exceptionally tough. Not in the work that had to be done, the work was it's usual, plus some extra animals at the barn, which I knew about last week. I knew we would have a full house this weekend. I just had this overwhelming sense of frustration at the end of each work day that even though I did a job well done at the weekend job, the work at home has been neglected (which it has been). Coming home from work on Thursday, seeing a water leak in my living room and not being able to find the part of the roof causing said leak was discouraging and frustrating. I pulled myself up into my attic crawl space with my flashlight and just can't see to find where the water is coming in. I came home last night and crashed into bed around 9:15 PM, early even for me. My personal To Do list has come to a screeching halt, partially my fault, partially due to circumstances.
So on the flight back to the US, I made the decision to seek full time work somewhere, someplace and then cut back on my weekend job if I could not see or sense a return to full time status. My current job is a cross between a project manager and an office manager for a small company. The perks to this job are it's very close to home, the office environment is pretty good for the most part, I get 75% of my health insurance paid for by the company, I get paid vacation and some paid holidays. I like the work, I like the people, and the office dress is casual.
What I don't like is my boss having a meltdown over the drastic drop in business and IMO a lot of his knee jerk reactions to the current economic situation and some of the ideas he has to save money here at the office (some good, some a bit bizarre). I also don't have things like a 401K plan, retirement options, etc. I'm not getting any younger, I currently don't have a significant other to help offset my expenses, and I'm sure as heck not contributing to my own retirement fund. I'm not helping myself. The other thing is I'm pretty much maxed out on how I can "move up" in this company. I am as far up as I can go, short of buying the company or being made a partner (both not realistic options). Plus to be quite honest, I see another reduction in hours in my future,not a return to full time status, since our business has not picked up and our income stream is down-that would not be a good thing for me at all.
I have a real estate license, but the real estate market is just not happening at the moment and I have no clients. Being less than part time does not help either. One reason I took the weekend job was I was not getting any real estate clients and could not use real estate to as an additional income source as originally planned. I had hoped that when I re-activated my license that I would be able to have a few clients to at least cover my costs associated with the license and additional income to offset the car, contribute to savings, etc. Part of me knows I could be a darned good real estate agent. A lot of the skills I have accumulated in my work life translate well to real estate, I'm good with an overwhelming majority of people, I'm computer literate which helps in searching the various MLS's, I like to read and keep on top of industry trends so buyers and sellers know you are "looking out" for them, I have a nice network/Rolodex of contacts in the field. I have a really good sense of my area's market conditions, my current broker who holds my license has told me that on several occasions. There just are not buyers out there right now.
Part of my is kicking myself for not being a more aggressive saver to my E fund and also allowing myself to have a VERY broad definition of what constitutes an emergency and then dipping into said E-fund. Had I been more diligent about this, maybe I would have the confidence to forgo my current job and move into real estate on a part time basis with the intention to move to full time, the market has to turn around at some point! One fall out from the Bankruptcy is my confidence took a huge hit and I constantly second guess myself with each decision I make. I'm getting better about my decision making, but not where I should be. I hinder myself in that respect.
I made the decision to drag out and dust off my resume and start looking for full time work, either in my current field or a related field AND also make a much more concerted effort to find a way to become self employed and work for myself. I will use the next couple weeks to re-work the resume, start looking at job search engines, and figure out what field I want to pursue work in. I've also started another one of my endless to do lists to assist in this endeavour. This time, the lists will get my attention because the lists will turn into an action plan to put me on my new path.
PLAN A
1) Buy a new laptop for new business. My old laptop is very dated, hard drive is about to crash and does not allow me to connect to the Internet.
2) Price out broadband Internet for home if working from home becomes a viable option (I currently use dial up-gasp, yes sooo 1990's).
3) Pursue online work-Elance, Virtual Assistant work, web design, Virtual Assistant work for real estate agents.
4) Pursue part time work-Continue at barn 3 days a week, currently can provide a steady income stream and that will cover almost my basic living expenses.
5) Give serious thought to entering the Real Estate field on a part time basis-either on my own or as part of a team.
6) If entering the Real Estate field as part of a team, make sure I get a written contract/outline of duties and pay scale.
7) Pursue other part time web based income streams.
8) Work on that E-fund! Now it really needs to be at the 3-6 month mark more so than ever.
PLAN B
1) All of the above PLUS
2) Looking for full time work so that I can move to being 'my own boss' but at least have increased income and more weekend free time.
PLAN C
1) Win the Powerball and say screw it to plan A and B, move to Costa Rica and drink margarita's on the beach.
I'll keep you informed.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Annoyance Part II
So, I heard back from my neighbors wife. She e-mailed me knowing I was out of town. She said in her first e-mail to me that she did not take the missing liquor. I responded back OK, maybe I misplaced it (but she knows how small my house is, there are not that many places to misplace things) or it could be in one other spot and I'd check when I got back home. Which could very well be the case. I could have put the bottle in one other spot and forgot about it.
I get a second e-mail this AM that says her husband had a buddy over while I was away who likes whiskey, so maybe they took the bottles and forgot. MAYBE TOOK THE BOTTLES AND FORGOT! I have a couple problems with this.
It's one thing to use my spare key and go in to my house to water the plants, it's one thing to leave a note and say, hey we ran out of booze late Friday night and borrowed your bottle of Tequila. It's a totally dammed other thing to let an almost complete stranger into my house and take my good whiskey and the gin.
Neighbors husband has this friend who keeps falling in and out of AA. Last time I spoke to him (which was around the holidays), he was going to go clean and sober because he became a first time grandfather and wanted to become part of his family again. His drinking had become so bad he lost his license to a DUI and was only allowed to drive his truck to work and back from work, and not on the weekends. He had become detached from his family. He likes to hang out with my neighbors husband, they do similar work, etc. And just so you know, I don't like the man, not only is he drunk each time he comes over to the neighbors house, he is also just an unpleasant person. Neighbors wife does not like husband's friend all that much either.
I can see this whole scene. Neighbors husband and friend are hanging out drinking their livers into cirrhosis. Neighbors wife is working the late shift as she does do for her job so she is not home. Neighbors husband and friend run out of their beverage of choice. My neighbors don't have a liquor cabinet per se, they buy liquor and they drink it. Neighbors husband knows I have a selection of liquor. Neighbor husband volunteers to get a bottle from my cupboard and is so drunk, he does not remember it the next day or now two weeks later. I have no idea if this is the case, but people I can just see this happening knowing my neighbor's husband and his sense of generosity using my liquor. Neighbors husband is actually a nice guy, probably did not have any money and liberated my whiskey from my house to give to his scummy friend.
Folks, I can't make this up, I sure hope I'm wrong and I'l find the bottle in the only other place it could be (and truthfully, that would be under the kitchen sink). My neighbors are having some personal issues and the husband is dealing with them by drinking far too much far too many days during the week, the wife by staying with her sister a couple nights a week.
I guess the only solution to this is to take back my key that I have with them and when I go away, hide all my liquor or put a lock on the one piece of furniture that I can convert to a liquor cabinet. I think what I will do is get that lock and do a re-arranging of my special bottles of liquor anyway and move on from this situation.
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